PALO ALTO, Calif., June 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) today announced that the company's TrueBeam system for image-guided radiotherapy and radiosurgery has received a 2011 R&D 100 Award from R&D Magazine. This annual award salutes the 100 most technologically significant products of the prior year, spanning many categories, from biomedical products to consumer items.

"We're honored that the judges have chosen to recognize the TrueBeam system for this prestigious award," said Timothy Guertin, president and CEO of Varian Medical Systems. "We took everything clinicians told us they wanted to enable advances in cancer treatment, and challenged ourselves to engineer a completely new treatment platform. TrueBeam is the culmination of those efforts."

A TrueBeam system incorporates a multitude of technical innovations in order to dynamically synchronize imaging, patient positioning, motion management, and treatment delivery. It also offers clinicians a dose delivery rate that is roughly twice the maximum output of conventional radiotherapy systems. This makes it possible to offer shorter treatment times for patients, potentially enabling clinics to treat more patients each day and to improve precision by leaving less time for tumor motion during dose delivery.

"At Varian, our mission is to help doctors save another 100,000 lives each year," Guertin said. "Our hope is that TrueBeam will not only make it possible for more patients to receive treatment, but the speed and precision of the system will make it possible to treat tumors that would not have been treatable using earlier generations of technology."

More than 220 TrueBeam systems have been ordered by treatment centers around the world since the TrueBeam system was first introduced in April 2010. More than 65 TrueBeam installations are either completed or in process.

Varian has a longstanding tradition of innovation. The company currently holds over 285 U.S. patents and has over 180 patent applications pending. In 2010, Varian ranked fifth in the medical equipment/instruments category of IEEE's Patent Power rankings. IEEE is the world's largest professional technology association. In 2010, Varian spent $157M on research and development, nearly 7% of the company's revenues.

ABOUT VARIAN MEDICAL SYSTEMS

Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, is the world's leading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, and brachytherapy. The company supplies informatics software for managing comprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centers and medical oncology practices. Varian is a premier supplier of tubes and digital detectors for X-ray imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications and also supplies X-ray imaging products for cargo screening and industrial inspection. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 5,500 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America, Europe, and China and approximately 70 sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com.